Expedition Unknown Episode Review: “Temple of Doom”

A review of the season 1 television episode that first aired January 15, 2015.

Synopsis: Host Josh Gates travels to a newly discovered lost city from the ancient Khmer Empire and search for a mystical stone that was believed to give the king the ability to incinerate anyone that opposed him. His journey, however, is one that is full of a variety of dangers ranging from landmines, poisonous snakes and scorpions and even questionable modes of transportation.

Places Visited

The adventure takes place in Cambodia.

A Great History Lesson

I was really impressed with this show’s debut episode a week ago and, because of that, was preparing myself for a bit of a letdown this week, partly because I noticed this episode was only an hour long instead of two hours. However, I have to admit, Josh Gates impressed me once again.

One thing I love about this new show is he doesn’t just focus on the hidden treasure he’s seeking. Instead, he also takes the time to teach the viewer a little something about world history. Up until watching this particular episode, I honestly didn’t know much about Cambodia or its long history. And, after seeing this episode, I definitely have a new appreciation of the country’s long heritage and the horrible things the people living there had to endure. It honestly made me appreciate my life a little more.

I think the thing that really stood out for me when it came to this episode had to be the fact he risked dying just from stepping in the wrong spot. I loved how they made sure to show us just how damaging one of the millions of landmines could be if stepped on because it definitely added a whole new element of danger for Gates as he went into the jungle to find the archaeological dig, especially since there were also plenty of dangerous animals he had to avoid.

The most memorable part of this episode though had to be those weird trains the people used to get around. My wife and I both really want to go on one of those now because, even though Gates managed to voice his complaints, it did look like a lot of fun. Though, admittedly, I think we’d feel a lot more comfortable doing that if the tracks were in a little better condition. Some of the spots they crossed looked like something you would see on a scary roller coaster.

Final Opinion

As is usually the case with Josh Gates’ shows, this episode was less about what ancient relic he found/didn’t find as it was the adventure getting there. I learned a great bit about a country I never really thought much about prior to seeing this episode and the dangers he had to face just to get to his destination made this episode fun to watch.